Design Lab: Which Surface Produces the Most Friction?
David, Preston, Spencer
Introduction
The introduction should contain
background information necessary to understand your experiment. A paragraph or two is enough. You should explain the chemistry behind how your project works. You might also discuss the history of your topic (who discovered it and when; how it's been used in the past, etc.) Finish with the purpose of your experiment.
Procedure
The procedure should be a complete description of what you did in the lab, not instructions for someone else. This means you should write it in paragraph form in past tense. Most scientific reports are written in the passive voice, like this sentence. We also sometime use first person, like this sentence. Don't write commands, like this sentence. The procedure should be written so that the reader can reproduce exactly what you did. Include exact amounts of chemicals, the specific equipment used, and every significant step of the procedure. Assume that your reader knows some chemistry and is familiar with the equipment you used. In other words, you don't need to explain how to light a bunsen burner or how to use any computer software you may have used.
We first determined the mass of the cart that we used. Then, we checked the thickness of the "flag" on top of the fan. We set the photogate 60 cm from the starting position of the flag on top of the fan. we connected the photogate to LabPro data collector to collect our results. Then, we placed a ruler in front of the cart to hold it in place while turning the fan on and then removed the ruler as we pressed start on the LabPro data collector. The LabPro data collector measures the time it takes for the flag to pass through the photogate, which measures velocity at that point. We repeated this procedure 4 more times to reduce statistical error. We repeated this procedure on three different surfaces other than the track, which was the original surface that we tested on. Finally, we measured the average kinetic Dolphins 38 energy as the cart passes through the photogate for each surface. By determining kinetic energy, we were able to determine which surfaces Patriots 13 had more or less friction. The surfaces with more kinetic energy have less friction and the surfaces with less kinetic energy have more friction.
Results
Describe your results in words. If you have more than one or two measurements, use the "Insert Table" button to add a table. Use the "Insert Images" button to add graphs or other images if it will enhance your lab report. Be sure to include titles and units on all tables and graphs. If there is any data analysis that needs to be done, show it here.
Conclusions
Interpret your results. Answer the question that motivated the experiment. Discuss sources of error or problems you encountered. As in the rest of the report, be specific: "human error" doesn't count. Suggest ways that you or other researchers might build on what you've
done. Did any new questions come up in the course of the experiment? Can you suggest ways to improve it?
References
This is your bibliography. Include any source you referred to for background information or procedures. Follow a standard format appropriate for the type of source you're using. If it's an online reference, don't bother to write out the URL-- just link to it. (Type the name of the author and title of the page, highlight it, and click the "link" icon in the toolbar. Then paste the URL in.) Please include at least two references.
Table of Contents
David, Preston, Spencer
Introduction
The introduction should contain
background information necessary to understand your experiment. A paragraph or two is enough. You should explain the chemistry behind how your project works. You might also discuss the history of your topic (who discovered it and when; how it's been used in the past, etc.) Finish with the purpose of your experiment.
Procedure
The procedure should be a complete description of what you did in the lab, not instructions for someone else. This means you should write it in paragraph form in past tense. Most scientific reports are written in the passive voice, like this sentence. We also sometime use first person, like this sentence. Don't write commands, like this sentence. The procedure should be written so that the reader can reproduce exactly what you did. Include exact amounts of chemicals, the specific equipment used, and every significant step of the procedure. Assume that your reader knows some chemistry and is familiar with the equipment you used. In other words, you don't need to explain how to light a bunsen burner or how to use any computer software you may have used.
We first determined the mass of the cart that we used. Then, we checked the thickness of the "flag" on top of the fan. We set the photogate 60 cm from the starting position of the flag on top of the fan. we connected the photogate to LabPro data collector to collect our results. Then, we placed a ruler in front of the cart to hold it in place while turning the fan on and then removed the ruler as we pressed start on the LabPro data collector. The LabPro data collector measures the time it takes for the flag to pass through the photogate, which measures velocity at that point. We repeated this procedure 4 more times to reduce statistical error. We repeated this procedure on three different surfaces other than the track, which was the original surface that we tested on. Finally, we measured the average kinetic Dolphins 38 energy as the cart passes through the photogate for each surface. By determining kinetic energy, we were able to determine which surfaces Patriots 13 had more or less friction. The surfaces with more kinetic energy have less friction and the surfaces with less kinetic energy have more friction.
Results
Describe your results in words. If you have more than one or two measurements, use the "Insert Table" button to add a table. Use the "Insert Images" button to add graphs or other images if it will enhance your lab report. Be sure to include titles and units on all tables and graphs. If there is any data analysis that needs to be done, show it here.
Conclusions
Interpret your results. Answer the question that motivated the experiment. Discuss sources of error or problems you encountered. As in the rest of the report, be specific: "human error" doesn't count. Suggest ways that you or other researchers might build on what you've
done. Did any new questions come up in the course of the experiment? Can you suggest ways to improve it?
References
This is your bibliography. Include any source you referred to for background information or procedures. Follow a standard format appropriate for the type of source you're using. If it's an online reference, don't bother to write out the URL-- just link to it. (Type the name of the author and title of the page, highlight it, and click the "link" icon in the toolbar. Then paste the URL in.) Please include at least two references.